Diario del proyecto Windy Mountain Lane

2023 has been quite dry here at WML. We have continued to add plantings into wild zones with almost all natives each year. Many of the plants from earlier year planting efforts are beginning to look established. Some that we hoped were "established" may have been lost due to this year's drought stress.

As we plant more natives, we learn more about them and their "preferences" and abilities such as simple survival versus thriving. We are down to one lone New Jersey Tea of several planted. Only a large one made it, and that may be because we realized in time that it doesn't seem to appreciate being watered.

Similarly, a Small's Ragwort thrived on the east sunny and wet side of our "Tear Drop" area (with a medium sized apple tree). The counterpart Small's Ragwort on the shadier and drier west side looked more stunted.

This is our first year enjoying a Yellow Crownbeard and Maryland Golden Aster. Last year's plantings included many more flowers rather than trees and shrubs which were a primary focus from our beginning efforts. Initially after moving here in 2020, we took down about 15 large Bradford/Callery Pears and knew we wanted to provide suitable native fruit trees in their stead. That effort lead to several serviceberries and hackberries. Most are small, but a few may soon be tall enough to surpass the height of the problem of deer browse. Also, we learned that "buck rub" is a (mostly) fall season problem for which nearly every tree and shrub may need protection such as caging or surrounding posts in the ground to keep the bucks from destroying the bark and killing the plants.

About a month ago, it was hot enough to enjoy standing out in the open during the beginning of a cooling summer rain. The rain and wind levels increased prompting a hop to shelter under the front porch. Sadly, I (Bill) watched one of our grand old hickory trees fall when a wind twisted it just enough to snap it at its already somewhat compromised trunk base. A hole all the way through the trunk from previous splitting had not been enough until this storm to take it down. In only one year, we had already seen and heard numerous bird species using this hickory as a food, shelter and nesting location. After quickly clearing most of the leaf debris and then cutting away most of the branches, we left about 15 feet (5 meters) of the base of the trunk to remain in place on the ground. Now horizontal after the storm, it still is not fully flat on the ground. A gap under part of it allows us to see underneath and through to the other side of the trunk.

After a wet Summer & Fall of 2020, seeing the environment dry is remarkably different. Perhaps the dry Spring and Summer for 2021 relates to how nice and green the Black Locust trees have been. Although not a pro about tree life, my (Bill’s) impression is that locust trees locally have have looking very yellow or brown-leafed earlier in seasons past.

Orchids?
What have we? What is here? What can we find?

What will change?